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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/28227276">A Good Teacher</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Maybelifeistooshort/pseuds/Maybelifeistooshort'>Maybelifeistooshort</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Big Sister Azula [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Avatar: The Last Airbender</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>AU, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Azula is older, Fluff, Gen, Oneshot, Ozai (Avatar) Being a Terrible Parent, Zuko is adorable, azula is a good sister au, big sister Azula, older azula</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-12-21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-12-21</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-10 15:54:32</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,096</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/28227276</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Maybelifeistooshort/pseuds/Maybelifeistooshort</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Zuko's teacher thinks it's okay to burn him when he gets something wrong, Azula does what she can to help.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Azula &amp; Zuko (Avatar), Iroh &amp; Zuko (Avatar)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>Big Sister Azula [2]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/2067780</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>181</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>A Good Teacher</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Azula sat by a pond, throwing pebbles into the water. She watched as they hit the water then sank down to the bottom.The turtleducks were starting to trust her again. The ducklings would come up to her, begging for seeds that Zuko and Ursa would bring with them. She only gave it to them because it meant that they would stop bugging her. </p><p> Zuko was supposed to be out of training, but he wasn’t. Azula blamed the uneasy feeling in her stomach on the cooks. She wasn’t worried. Father made sure that she knew that worry meant weakness, and Azula wasn’t weak. </p><p>Still, she found herself waiting for Zuko. He was on his fifth teacher now, the others long gone for not being good enough. Azula thought they seemed fine, but Zuko was having trouble learning the more simple forms. Father seemed to blame the teachers, and not the way of teaching. After four years, she thought Father would have picked up the problem. He hadn’t. </p><p>Azula looked up when she saw movement, Zuko and his new teacher walking out. Zuko’s eyes were red and puffy, as if he’d been crying. His teacher, a stern looking general that Azula hadn’t bothered to learn the name of, was holding him by the wrist. From where she was sitting, Azula could see that there were light burns on Zuko’s wrists. That wouldn’t do. </p><p>She followed the two of them to Father’s study, watching as Zuko shakily performed a few basic movements. Father seemed pleased with the improvement. Azula felt livid. Angry at their teacher for burning Zuko, angry at Zuko for not being able to protect himself, and most of all angry at Father for letting it happen. </p><p>She buried the anger deep inside of her as she walked over to Zuko at the pond, holding a baby turtleduck in his hand and carefully rubbing its head with his finger. It would have been an adorable sight if not for his wrists being ugly shades of red and purple. She could kill that general. </p><p>Azula walked over, sitting herself next to Zuko. She ignored the turtleducklings crawling in her lap, not wanting to shoo them off while Zuko looked just a second away from crying. She had to be gentle, like Uncle Iroh. </p><p>“The burns on your wrists. Did the general do them?” She asked, her voice flat and steady. </p><p>“Yeah. Whenever I got a move wrong…” He looked down, the turtleduckling nipping lightly on his finger when he stopped petting it. “I don’t know what I’m doing wrong! I know I have the forms right ‘Zula! I know I do!” He almost yelled after a moment of silence. Azula almost jumped as high as an airbender at the outburst. </p><p>Azula thought for a moment, knowing that Zuko was probably telling her the truth. He knew not to lie to her. He knew that she was safe. “What does he say you’re doing wrong?” She asked after a moment of thinking. </p><p>“He… doesn’t. He just tells me I’m doing it wrong and that my flame isn’t big enough.” Zuko explained. Azula nodded, awkwardly putting her hand on his shoulder. </p><p>“Get up.” She told him, standing herself. The turtleducklings ran back to the water when she started to move, not wanting to fall. </p><p>“Why?” Zuko tilted his head. </p><p>“Well I can’t help you if I don’t know what you’re doing wrong.” She told him, already turning and walking to the training area. She heard Zuko carefully set the turtleduckling down and rush to catch up to her. He was smart enough not to ask too many questions on their way. </p><p>They stood in the middle of the training ground, and Azula sat down. Zuko tilted his head, but followed her lead. </p><p>“So, you can summon a flame, right?” Azula asked. Zuko nodded, making a tiny flame appear in his hands. It was obvious that he wasn’t focused, and he was almost holding his breath waiting for her to tell him what to do. </p><p>“No wonder you’re not getting these things right.” Azula sighed. She wasn’t surprised that Zuko hadn’t been taught how to center himself, but she was furious nonetheless. It was the most important part of firebending, and Zuko had no idea how to do it. </p><p>“Focus.” She told him, summoning her own fire in her palms. It was big and warm. “Follow my lead, okay?” Zuko nodded, watching his fire now. </p><p>“Make sure you’re breathing. Take a deep breath in,” Zuko did so, and his flame grew, “and let it out.” And it flickered, keeping its size. “Bending is about energy and focus. This is your inner fire. It’s important to focus on it. Don’t let anything distract you.” </p><p>“It’s like meditating with Uncle!” Zuko realized, and Azula smiled despite herself. She didn’t get along with the old man, but Zuko loved him. She wished that he could be Zuko’s teacher, but he was still fighting. </p><p>“Exactly like that.” She told him, “Now, take a deep breath in and feel your fire get bigger. Don’t be afraid of it. You’re in control.” She told him, sitting just a little bit closer in case she was wrong. She wasn't sure if she was helping at all, but Zuko seemed impressed. </p><p>Zuko took a deep breath in, and the flame in his hand grew. Zuko smiled, but kept as calm as he could. </p><p>“See, that wasn’t that hard, was it?” She asked. Azula had mastered this when she was six, but she supposed that she was lucky enough to have a good teacher there to teach her about the importance of breathing. </p><p>She stood up, Zuko following her. She taught him the moves that he had gone over that day, biting her tongue when he messed up, giving him a strained smile and telling him to try again. Uncle was a lot better at being patient than she was. </p><p>Zuko was a quick learner. After four hours, he was where he was supposed to be. While she was nowhere near at her level, it was obvious that he was talented. He just needed a little guidance, and it seemed that she was the only one that could do it, at least until Uncle came back. Then she could go back to normal. </p><p>A bitter part of her hoped Uncle wouldn’t want to teach him, or return home at all. The way he looked at her with his big eyes when he got a move right was something she never wanted to stop seeing. It filled her with pride.</p>
  </div><div class="fff_chapter_notes fff_foot_notes"><b>Author's Note:</b><blockquote class="userstuff"><p>I like this one. It's a little more focused than the last one. If people like it, I think I'll write more for this. Any feedback, positive or negative is welcome, I'm always looking to better my writing. Kudos and comments are appreciated. Thank you for reading and have a lovely day!!</p></blockquote></div></div>
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